Mr. Speaker, bigger and better government programs may be well-intentioned but have left a very poor track record. We will thank the minister when he actually accomplishes something. However, statistics tell another story of the past.
One in five Canadian children live in poverty. That is 1.4 million children in all. The most recent increase is among children who
live in families with working parents. Families have suffered a $3,000 national pay cut since 1993 due to tax increases. Rising taxes are exactly why the working poor have less money for their children.
Does the Minister of Human Resources Development not see that it makes more sense to cut taxes to the working poor? That would leave more money in each pay cheque rather than giving them a government cheque through another big government program?